UK-US flight disruptions to continue after major outage

A nationwide air traffic control system failure in the US forced thousands of cancellations and delays on Friday and Saturday (November 13 and 14).

The incident marks the first nationwide US ground stop since January 2023, and only the second since the September 11, 2001 attacks.

It was also the longest nationwide ground stop in 25 years.

The disruptions impacted passengers worldwide, including at London Heathrow and other UK airports.

Before, during, and after the nationwide ground stop on 13 November in the United States. Thousands of flights were affected by IT equipment issues as the FAA cleared the national airspace system. Flight cancellations have topped 10,000. https://t.co/5IGvP1dXOs

— Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) November 14, 2026

At Heathrow, several departures and arrivals to and from the US were delayed or cancelled.

Passengers were left stranded or forced to find alternative routes, as airlines scrambled to rebook travellers and adjust schedules.

Flight tracking services reported that more than 4,100 flights were cancelled.

What caused the US flight disruptions?

The failure was traced to an attempt to upgrade ageing technology within the US air traffic control network.

Contractors were replacing old copper wiring with fibre optic cables, which triggered an overload and led to intermittent communication and radar outages.

Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy said officials were investigating whether contractor “incompetence” or a faulty wire was the cause.

Passengers warned of continued flight disruptions between the UK and US

The issue has been resolved, and the US air travel schedule is expected to be back to normal by the end of Sunday (November 15), FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) administrator Bryan Bedford said.

Mr Bedford added the "worst is behind us," but warned of lingering disruption as airlines worked to reposition aircraft and crew.

Update on United States flight disruption More information: https://t.co/5HyzB9xxq0 https://t.co/IVTSuIliRh

— UK Civil Aviation Authority (@UK_CAA) November 14, 2026

The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has also warned Brits travelling to and from the US to expect further disruptions.

Consumer director at the CAA, Tim Johnson, said: "While US flights have resumed, there may be some follow-on disruption as airlines work to rebook affected passengers and get all services back to normal.

"Anyone due to travel on flights between the UK and USA should check with their airline for the latest information before heading to the airport."

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